Dell's newly released Inspiron Mini 9 netbook is part of that special “class” of products that receive impressive amounts of media attention, even weeks before they are officially released. Then again, this could just as well be what Dell intended from the very start, as part of a bigger marketing plan. Now that the official release finally took place, the 9-inch netbook is still pretty much as hyped as before, partly because the company continues to act coyly about what it goes on record with and what not.

 

Recent reports indicate that Dell's first netbook will come with 3G capabilities – the only catch here being that you will need to be a Vodafone customer in order to enjoy it. The 3G-enabled Inspiron Mini 9 will be made available exclusively in Europe through 3G operator Vodafone, which will sell the product through its own distribution channels. However, no details regarding pricing and availability have been made public, but chances are the netbook could become cheaper than $349 for the Linux-enabled model, if part of some special Vodafone offering.

 

In addition, according to Dell's blog, users can get one of Dell's Inspiron Minis for only $99. Yes, this is not a typo: the Inspiron Mini 9 can be yours for less than $100. At this price tag, this netbook is certainly the cheapest portable computer system on the market. There's is one catch here too, as you probably guessed already. In order to get the promotional Inspiron Mini, users will also need to purchase one of Dell's Studio 15, XPS M1530 or XPS M1330 notebooks. We are talking about fully-fledged notebooks bundled with Atom-powered Mini netbooks ideal for Internet use. Ultimately, this could be a great deal, allowing grown-ups get to benefit from the fully-fledged notebook, while their children get to play with the Inspiron Mini 9.

 

It certainly appears that Dell is trying to keep your mind off the fact that its first netbook offers only 8GB of storage for the Windows-enabled model, while it isn’t that much either in terms of features and functionality. On the other hand, this should not stop anyone from giving kudos to Dell for delivering a well-packaged and intelligently-marketed product, whose main purpose is to be ultra-portable and provide access to the Internet.